BoE base rate kept at 0.5%

This article was correct at the time of publication. It is now over 6 months
old so the content may be out of date.

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) today announced that it will be keeping base rate at 0.5% for another month at least.

The measure has remained at its current record low for just under four years now – it was last changed in March 2009.

During the meeting, it was also decided that the Bank's quantitative easing programme would be kept at £375 billion.

Earlier this week, the investment bank Citi said that it expects base rate to remain at 0.5% until 2017. If this prediction comes to fruition, it is a further blow to the country's savers, who will have to deal with another four years of low returns.

Recent moneyfacts.co.uk research has also revealed that the savings market continues to take a hit following the launch of the Government's Funding for Lending Scheme in August last year.

The scheme was designed to boost lending to individuals and small businesses by providing cheaper funding to banks and building societies, but it has also adversely affected the savings market as the demand for savers' deposits lessens, with savings rates being slashed across the board.